Sharp MZ-700

The Sharp MZ-700 is a home computer manufactured by Sharp, released in November 1982 in Japan and 1983 in Europe. It is the successor to the MZ-80K line and the first Sharp MZ computer without a built-in CRT monitor, adopting a flat keyboard-unit design that connected to an external TV or monitor, making it significantly cheaper and more portable than its predecessors. The MZ-700 features a Sharp LH0080A (Z80A-compatible) CPU at 3.55 MHz, 64 KB RAM, and a 40×25 character text display with 8 colors — introducing color output to the MZ-80K line for the first time. There is no true bitmap graphics mode; all “graphics” are achieved through block/semigraphic characters in the character generator ROM, giving an effective pseudo-graphics resolution of 80×50 pixels. Sound is a basic 1-bit beeper via an 8253 timer. Storage is via a built-in 1200-baud cassette interface. Like all MZ series computers, the MZ-700 follows the “clean computer” philosophy — only a minimal monitor program (IPL) in ROM. BASIC and other languages must be loaded from cassette or disk. The MZ-700 maintains strong backwards compatibility with the MZ-80K series, sharing the same memory map layout and cassette format. In the UK, the MZ-700 was the 10th best-selling home computer in 1983, praised for its build quality and reliable cassette loading.